On August 25, 1951, a series or really a pattern of lights appeared in the sky over Lubbock, Texas. The first to notice the unusual pattern of green lights were professors at Texas Technological College, which today is Texas Tech University. The professors were sitting on the 24th Street patio of Dr. Wilbur Robinson when they saw the lights pass quickly and silently overhead. The arc of lights disappeared, then shortly thereafter, made another pass over the city.
So began one of the greatest mysteries in UFO history, The Lubbock Lights.
Over the course of the next several weeks many residents in Lubbock, then a small Texas city saw the lights. All reported the same patterns and speed. Clearly, this could not have been some experimental aircraft as many at the time surmised, because we now know the U.S. Air Force nor any other agency possessed an aircraft which could operate at the estimated speed of the lights. In fact, no such aircraft exists today.
In 1952, LIFE magazine ran an article dedicated to the UFO Phenomena which was by then sweeping the country. It included a list of the top 10 most unusual cases that the Air Force could not adequately explain through its usual “natural events” tales. First on that list were the Lubbock Lights. And to date, no official government explanation has been provided. The Lubbock Lights remain a mystery.
How Fast Were the Lubbock Lights Traveling?
Although these lights were seen by many, the most credible witnesses were the three college professors visiting on that late, Saturday night near downtown Lubbock. One was a geologist, one the head of petroleum engineering, and the other a professor of chemical engineering. As scientists all, they took a different approach to what they saw than most.
Because they heard no sound, they surmised that the lights must have been somewhere around 50,000 feet above. Having seen them pass a second time, they were also able to judge the arc of travel and the time it took for the craft or crafts to pass. Their estimate of speed? Roughly 18,000 miles per hour.
Some today chalk the Lubbock Lights up to migrating birds, somehow having sunlight from further west reflecting off their wings. Yet, if this were the case, those were some pretty fast-flying birds. Also, if it were birds, the Air Force would have jumped all over that explanation at the time. Bear in mind that by 1951, migratory patterns of birds in North America were well documented. No, instead, the Lubbock Lights became one of the UFO events the United States Air Force could not explain.
Because the year was 1951, there are many still living who may have seen the Lubbock Lights but were afraid to tell their story. Remember that just as today, those who tell their tale are often seen as crazy, misled, or uneducated and ill-informed. Yet, the Lubbock Lights have perhaps the largest group of individuals and the most credible of nearly any sightings in history. Today, Texas Tech even hosts an annual music festival called the Lubbock Lights.
Thus, if anyone living today who was around then and saw something, anything, their story would be helpful. We would love to hear from you. The International UFO Museum and Research Center at Roswell is the largest alien life research facility in the Western Hemisphere. We are dedicated to learning the truth about extraterrestrial life and visits from outside our galaxy. We would love to add your story to the growing wealth of information so that maybe, one day, the mystery of the Lubbock Lights may be solved.